A Drunken Childhood
by SoundEffectsAndOverdramatics-x
Summary: A drunken night of partying leads to Ruby reminiscing about the days in her childhood she spent with the town Sheriff. Ruby/Graham. AU. ONESHOT. Don't own OUAT. R&R!


She's drunk.

She knows this much.

The world is spinning far too much for her not to be.

She isn't sure what time it is.

Hell, she isn't even sure what day it is.

But she definitely knows it's late at night.

The streets are empty and the moon is casting a silvery glow over the entire town of Storybrooke, Maine.

She's stumbling on the road, glad there aren't any cars to get in her way.

She didn't even know how she got this drunk.

She remembered taking three shots of tequila.

That's around the time she started blacking out.

It was slowly coming back to her now, but the more it did, the more she didn't want to remember.

This was one hell of a night of partying.

She'd never seen Mary Margaret go that wild before.

Never seen Emma drink beer from a keg like that.

Of course, the party was ruined when Regina walked in and said it was far too late at night for everyone to be making so much noise. Sheriff Graham had gotten way too many complaints, and she had to step in.

Of course, what Madam Mayor says, goes.

What surprised Ruby the most was the fact that Emma persuaded her to take a shot of tequila before she left.

Apparently, Madam Mayor had a bit of party left in her.

Ruby couldn't wait to party with that side of Regina, but she had a feeling it would take A LOT of tequila shots to bring that side of her out.

She hears the sirens behind her and clutches her head, stumbling on the road and trying to move to the side so Sheriff Graham can pass her without interruption.

Her head is pounding and she knows she's in for one hell of a hangover tomorrow morning.

"Ruby!"

"Ugh..." She doesn't want to deal with Graham right now. She just wants to curl up in a bed and sleep off this dizzy feeling.

"Ruby..."

He's beside her in less than five seconds and her heart skips a beat.

"Whoa! Where'd you come from?" She asks, confused.

"Ruby, you look like you're going to tip over."

"I'm fine." She slurs. He chuckles.

"Let me take you home."

"I'm fine..." She repeats. She tries to turn to face him, but the whole world spins and her face almost hits the concrete.

But his arms wrap around her. He ducks one arm under her knees and scoops her off her feet, holding her in his arms.

"Dude!"

"Dude, you. You can barely walk. Come on."

She's groaning in pain as each movement causes her head to throb. She wraps her arms around his neck, hoping it will help and it does slightly. He puts her in the passenger seat and she dozes off immediately.

When she comes to, he's carrying her in his arms again and she's in her room. Graham lays her down on her bed and Granny watches her from the door.

"Apparently the whole town is drunk." She clicks her tongue in disapproval.

"I'd say so!" Ruby says happily, grabbing the blankets and holding them tightly to her body. Graham laughs and Granny sighs.

"Get some sleep. I'm going to be nursing a lot of hangovers tomorrow which means work will start early." She says sternly. Ruby pouts and groans but Granny never falls for it, which means she won't this time either.

"Alright...goodnight, Ruby."

"Hey, wait!"

She grips his wrist and smiles, her eyes opening. He's looking at her blankly, but his eyes are lighting up with something she can't quite put her finger on.

"Yeah?"

"Stay with me?" She asks, pouting. He chuckles.

"Do you want people to think we've slept together?"

"Since when have I cared? I'm already the town slut." Ruby says, grinning widely. Graham shakes his head.

"You're not a slut. But I will stay here with you...for awhile. Till you fall asleep. Fair?" He asks, cocking an eyebrow. She thinks about it, then nods.

"Fine."

She'd prefer it if he stayed the whole night.

Hell, she'd prefer it if he slept with her altogether.

There's no denying, the Sheriff is one hot piece of ass.

But he's also a caring and gentle one.

She falls asleep with him sitting on the chair beside her and when she wakes up, he's still there, fast asleep in the chair.

And sure enough, her head is pounding like someone is banging drums inside her brain.

"Ow!" She groans. Graham wakes with a start.

"Huh? What? What's happened?" He says, his eyes wide with alert. Ruby sighed.

"Hangover!"

"Shit! I slept here?" Graham bounces off his seat, looking around frantically for his jacket.

"Calm down, no biggie!"

"Big biggie! I have a job you know!"

"Oh, shit! So do I!"

Ruby jumps off her bed, but falls back down when the world spins.

"Oh, this is the worlds worst hangover!"

"Someone shouldn't have drunk so much then." Graham said, still looking for his jacket.

And suddenly, it hits Ruby that Graham has never been out partying. Never been drunk around people. Probably never been drunk at all.

"You need to come out with us one night. I reckon you would have fun."

"Hmm, you think so?" He says, grinning. She grins back.

"Yes. Stop being Sheriff for once and be the cool guy I grew up with."

Graham laughs, his blue eyes twinkling.

"We'll see." He says, amused. Ruby's about to protest, but he finally finds his jacket and leaves straight away.

She misses Graham. He's too busy being Sheriff to really take time for anyone these days.

But she remembers the days when it was them two. They truly were each others childhood friends. She remembers running around Storybrooke as kids.

And she remembers him telling her he loved her on Toll Bridge, and her replying by painting an 'R' in between 'T' and 'O' and saying he should live under the bridge because HE was a troll.

Man, she was a bitch when she was a kid, she was a bitch now.

Nothing really did change.

But it would if she didn't get her butt out of bed and to work!

She leaves for work, thinking about Graham...

and how she hopes that "we'll see" will become a "yes" and she'll get to spend at least one day partying with the boy from her childhood.


End file.
